Jose Mourinho opted for the 3-5-2 formation in Manchester United’s first pre-season friendly against Los Angeles Galaxy. He changed the whole team for the second half but stuck to the 3-5-2 formation. Will this United play with a back 3 next season or is this just an exercise to increase the tactical options Jose has during the season?

The latter seems more likely considering the squad Mourinho has. Players like Juan Mata, Henrikh Mkhitaryan will struggle to get into a 3-5-2 formation. And although, United have 7 centerbacks including Tuanzebe at the moment, only Daley Blind can play as the libero. The ball playing center back is vital in a back three formation as it is his responsibility to initiate attacking moves.

It will certainly be exciting times for the fans at Old Trafford if Mourinho decides to pair up Romelu Lukaku and Marcus Rashford.But Jose Mourinho has always favoured a single striker formation in his entire career and he has no reason to change that this season. So we might see the 3-5-2 formation in the big games in the next season especially considering that Arsenal, Chelsea and Manchester City are more than likely to play with the back three.